Zelnick: PS4, Xbox One to Outsell Predecessors in Five Years

Following a promising first few weeks, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will outsell the PS3 and Xbox 360 in five years, Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick said in a presentation today.

The PS3 and Xbox 360 took eight years to sell a combined 160 million total units, according to Gamesindustry, but Zelnick thinks the new generation can do the same in five.

"I'd specifically say yes because it appears that--and this is largely anecdotal but tablets are a good example--all these new iterations of more and more exciting hardware seem to have picked up in velocity generationally compared to five or 10 years ago," Zelnick said. "But if we had a big market meltdown, for example, a repeat of [2008] and [2009] in three years, or two years, or two minutes, that would influence it. But if this economy stays on this track, yeah, I feel good about it."

Exit Theatre Mode

Zelnick said that Take-Two, the parent company of Rockstar Games and 2K Games, has a well-developed plan to navigate the console transition smoothly. Zelnick has been open about Take-Two's plans to buy back all of its shares before, and this time will be no different.

Take-Two has been "more forthcoming than [they've] ever been before," Zelnick said. And while Take-Two continues to remain silent about any plans to go private with a bigger portion of its shares back in hand, rapid sales can't hurt.

Mike Mahardy is a freelance writer for various outlets, and has a love/hate relationship with the NY Giants. To hear him rant, you can follow Mike on Twitter.